New Oregon State men's basketball coach Wayne Tinkle came ready to talk about the past.

"We're going to cherish what they've done and honor what they've done," said the 6-foot-10 Tinkle, who won 158 games in eight years as Montana's head coach. "And then we're going to work our asses off so they respect the direction we're going as well."

More than two weeks after Craig Robinson was fired at Oregon State, the Beavers believe they've brought in the right coach to bring shine back to a program that hasn't reached the NCAA Tournament since 1990. The Beavers struggled to a 93-104 record in six years under Robinson and lost in the first round of the CBI to Radford in front of just 1,351 fans in March. After a tumultuous start to the offseason that saw De Carolis announce Robinson would return, only to backtrack a month later, the Beavers are turning the program over to a man who led the Grizzlies to the NCAA Tournament three times in his eight years, won three Big Sky Conference Championships and hasn't had a losing season since 2007-08.

Tinkle wasn't a big splash, but De Carolis said he's a proven winner. Tinkle joked he had to explain that to some of his players Tuesday night when he was met by the question, "Wayne who?"

He was only half joking.

"As it came that it was going to be him as head coach I went on Google," sophomore-to-be guard Malcolm Duvivier said. "I really didn't know much about him."

What he's learned over the last few days, though, he's liked. Duvivier said he's spoken with Oregon State assistant coach Freddie Owens, who coached under Tinkle at Montana for four seasons.

"If he's the type of guy coach Owens is, I really like coach Owens as a coach," Duvivier said. "I really think he'll bring some good and exciting basketball."

Duvivier said the past month has taken its toll on the Oregon State roster and it's a relief that there is finally some balance back in the program. While he wasn't too aware of his new coach's resume prior to last week, he said he was quickly swayed by the enthusiasm Tinkle exhibited.

"Now we actually have a coach and we all agreed to buy into whatever he has to do to win," he said. "I think his philosophy really goes with what we're trying to achieve here as Beavers players. I'm really excited to get into this season. I think we have some big things coming this year."

Over the past few seasons, Tinkle has had his opportunities to leave Missoula. After Montana's 2011 season, a year that saw the Grizzlies post their second consecutive 20-win season, he was considered for the head coaching position at Fresno State. He ultimately withdrew from consideration. The next year, he led the Grizzlies to the NCAA Tournament. Now, after Montana posted a 17-13 record and finished second in the Big Sky, Tinkle said it was time for a new challenge.

"I told people often we've had opportunities the last several years to leave Montana and it's going to take a special place to get me out of here," Tinkle said, as his wife Lisa, daughters Joslyn and Elle, and son Tres looked on. "We certainly feel that way here now in Corvallis."

Tinkle has taken to the new job quickly. After meeting with players Tuesday night, he spent a lot of Wednesday talking with recruits on the phone. Hours before his press conference, he announced on Twitter that recruits Gary Payton II and Chai Baker will honor their commitments.

He also worked the fans. The Beavers are coming off a season that saw record-low attendance at Gill Coliseum. Tinkle was seen on Wednesday walking around campus, introducing himself to students and taking pictures. He may have been an unknown to his players, but a near 7-footer with snow white hair is tough to miss on the streets of Corvallis. He said it's going to take an effort to reach out into the community and get them to come to the games.

It's the little things that help, he said.

So does winning. And Tinkle is the man that Oregon State has staked its faith in.

"We're going to make you all proud of the product we have out there," he said. "We're going to make Oregon State basketball relevant again."